Bottle stopper



May 4, 1965 R. n. CHANCELLOR BOTTLE STOPPER Filed May 10, 1963 k mu CL mw v& mm rH 0K A MEMBER OF THF F/PM United States Patent 3,181,718 BOTTLE STOPPER Roy D. Chancellor, 1266 Naglec St, San Jose, Calif. Filed May 10, 1963, Ser. No. 279,437 2 Claims. (Cl. 215-9) This invention relates to a bottle or jar having a safety closure thereon.

It is highly important that medicines and poisons be kept from young children and various attempts have been made in the past to provide a bottle or jar closure which can be manipulated easily by an adult but which is very diflicult for a child to open. Most of these prior art structures have been complicated or have been difficult to actuate and have not become popular.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a bottle with a safety closure structure which is easy for an adult to open and close but which is very difiicult for a child to open.

Another object of this invention is to provide a safety closure which is inexpensive to manufacture and which is substantially foolproof in operation.

Other objects will be apparent from the specification which follows.

In the drawings forming a part of this application:

FIGURE 1 is an exploded view of a bottle top and closure embodying the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a section on the lines 22 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a plan view of the bottle top.

FIGURE 4 is an assembled view showing the cap in place in its locked position.

FIGURE 5 is a view similar to FIGURE 4 but showing the top of the cap depressed thereby unlocking the parts.

Referring now to the drawings by reference characters there is shown a bottle having a neck 7 with a thread 9 at the top thereof. On the inside of the neck there are four slots 11. Although four slots have been shown, it will later be apparent that two slots which are located 180 apart could be employed or that any even number of slots might be employed in the neck it being only important that mating pairs of slots be located opposite each other in the neck of the bottle. A closure generally designated 13 is provided for the bottle, the closure having a flexible top portion 15 and a depending side portion 17 having an internal thread 19 adapted to mate with the thread 9. A depending sleeve 21 adapted to extend downwardly into the neck of the bottleis also provided. In the embodiment shown, the sleeve 21 forms a fairly tight lit with the inside of the neck of the bottle but it will be later apparent that it isnot necessary that this sleeve contact the edge of the bottle and form a portion of the sealing mechanism of the bottle. Thus the sleeve could be made as shown, with a lip 23 which exerts a sealing action on the inside of the bottle neck but, for the purposes of the present invention, this sleeve 21 might be displaced inward and not actually contact the bottleneck. In the embodiment shown in FIGURES 1 through 5 the sleeve supports a bottom 25 which has a boss 27 at the center thereof. The boss has a central hole 28 in which apillar 29 is free to move. The upper portion of boss 27 is slotted as at 30. The sleeve 21 has holes 31 and 33 in opposite walls while the pillar 29 has a corresponding hole 35. Slots extending down in the sleeve from the top can be used in place of the holes 31and 33 for ease in assembly. A flexible pin or bar 37 passes through the 3,181,718 Patented May 4, 1965 holes 31, 33 and 35 and extends outwardly on each side of the sleeve so that when the cap is placed on the bottle as is shown in the assembled view of FIGURE 4, the ends of the pin 37 extend into the slots 11. It is apparent from FIGURE 4 that if one attempted to unscrew the cap, one would be prevented from doing so by the ends of pin 37 locking in slots 11. On the other hand, when one presses near the center of the flexible top portion 15, as is shown in FIGURE 5, pressure is exerted on the pillar 29 forcing it downward disengaging the ends of the pin 37 from the slot 11 so that the cap can be easily removed. It is obvious that it is also necessary to press downwardly on the center of the cap when it is placed on the bottle.

It is believed apparent from the foregoing that I have provided a simple yet effective bottle closure which is inexpensive to manufacture, easy for an adult to manipulate but almost impossible for a child to manipulate.

I claim:

1. A bottle and safety closure therefor including in combination:

(a) a bottle having a cylindrical neck, said neck having screw threads about the exterior thereof and at least two indentations in the interior thereof, said indentations being discontinuous and lying in about the same radial plane of said neck;

(17) a cap having a cylindrical collar portion with in terior screw threads mating with the said screw threads of the said neck and a normally horizontal top portion integral with the said collar, said normal ly horizontal portion being flexible and resilient;

(c) a pillar extending downward from about the center of the said flexible top portion;

(d) pins extending radiallyfrom at least two points adjacent the base of the said pillar toward the said collar of said cap, the said pins extending a distance in excess of that required to contact the internal portion of the neck of the said bottle when the said cap is in place upon the said bottle, said pins each terminating in an end of a size adapted to register with one of the said indentations in the said neck, said pins being flexible; and

(e) a sleeve extending downwardly from and secured near the marginal edge of said top portion, the sleeve having apertures therethrough on the same plane as the pins, with the terminal ends of the pins extending in sliding relationship through the apertures and into said indentations, said sleeve being sufliciently rigid to cause the said pins to deflect to an arcuate shape, disengaging the ends of said pins from the said indentations in the bottleneck and releasing the same cap when downward pressure is exerted near the center of the flexible, normally horizontal .top portion;

2. The structure of claim 1 wherein the said indenta I tions are in the form of a pair of vertical slots inside the neck of the said bottle, said slots being in a position. to register with the terminal ends of the said pins. I

References Cited by the Examiner THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner. 

1. A BOTTLE AND SAFETY CLOSURE THEREFOR INCLUDING IN COMBINATION: (A) A BOTTLE HAVING A CYLINDRICAL NECK, SAID NECK HAVING SCREW THREADS ABOUT THE EXTERIOR THEREOF AND AT LEAST TWO INDENTATIONS IN THE INTERIOR THEREOF, SAID INDENTATIONS BEING DISCONTINUOUS AND LYING IN ABOUT THE SAME RADIAL PLANE OF SAID NECK; (B) A CAP HAVING A CYLINDRICAL COLLAR PORTION WITH INTERIOR SCREW THREADS MATING WITH THE SAID SCREW THREADS OF THE SAID NECK AND A NORMALLY HORIZONTAL TOP PORTION INTEGRAL WITH THE SAID COLLAR, SAID NORMALLY HORIZONTAL PORTION BEING FLEXIBLE AND RESILIENT; (C) A PILLAR EXTENDING DOWNWARD FROM ABOUT THE CENTER OF THE SAID FLEXIBLE TOP PORTION; (D) PINS EXTENDING RADIALLY FROM AT LEAST TWO POINTS ADJACENT THE BASE OF THE SAID PILLAR TOWARD THE SAID COLLAR OF SAID CAP, THE SAID PINS EXTENDING A DISTANCE IN EXCESS OF THAT REQUIRED TO CONTACT THE INTERNAL PORTION OF THE NECK OF THE SAID BOTTLE WHEN THE SAID CAP IS IN PLACE UPON THE SAID BOTTLE, SAID PINS EACH TERMINATING IN AN END OF A SIZE ADAPTED TO REGISTER WITH ONE OF THE SAID INDENTATION IN THE SAID NECK, SAID PINS BEING FLEXIBLE; AND (E) A SLEEVE EXTENDING DOWNWARDLY FROM SAID SECURED NEAR THE MARGINAL EDGE OF SAID TOP PORTION, THE SLEEVE HAVING APERTURES THERETHROUGH ON THE SAME PLANE AS THE PINS, WITH THE TERMINAL ENDS OF THE PINS EXTENDING IN SLIDING RELATIONSHIPS, THROUGH THE APERTURES AND INTO SAID INDENTATIONS, SAID SLEEVE BEING SUFFICIENTLY RIGID TO CAUSE TO SAID PINS TO DEFLECT TO AN ARCUATE SHAPE, DISENGAGING THE ENDS OF SAID PINS FROM THE SAID INDENTATIONS IN THE BOTTLENECK AND RELEASING THE SAME CAP WHEN DOWNWARD PRESSURE IS EXERTED NEAR THE CENTER OF THE FLEXIBLE, NORMALLY HORIZONTAL TOP PORTION. 